Apple hires former head of US Environmental Protection Agency

Lisa P. Jackson, the former administrator of the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency, has joined Apple to oversee its environmental initiatives.

Apple Chief Executive Tim Cook revealed the hiring of Jackson in an interview with journalists Kara Swisher and Walt Mossberg at the D11 conference on Tuesday. Apple's environmentally friendly strategies were brought up by Mossberg, who noted that Apple has come under increased attention from critics as the company has grown.

The CEO mentioned that Apple currently owns the largest solar farm and the largest fuel cell of any non-energy company in the nation. The facilities are located adjacent to the company's data center in Maiden, N.C.

Jackson served as the administrator of the Environmental Protection Agency under President Barack Obama from 2009 until February of this year. Her resignation was politically motivated, according to the New York Post, as she did not agree with Obama's plans to greenlight the controversial Keystone XL oil pipeline.

In her new role of Apple, she will oversee the iPhone maker's green initiatives, including projects like the massive solar and fuel cell farm in North Carolina.

The CEO mentioned that Apple currently owns the largest solar farm and the largest fuel cell of any non-energy company in the nation. The facilities are located adjacent to the company's data center in Maiden, N.C.

But Greenpeace is still butthurt about Apple. Go figure.

"That (the) world is moving so quickly that iOS is already amongst the older mobile operating systems in active development today." — The Verge

There's something about a solar panel array that's five times larger than the building it's serving that just feels wrong. However, it's projects like this that spurs innovation in photovoltaics to be more efficient so sometimes you just have to go through the growing pains.

“What would I do? I’d shut Apple down and give the money back to the shareholders”

Whether you are liberal or conservative you should be disgusted that our elected officials are using unelected bureaucrats to lie to the public, to pass draconian regulations through un-democratic means. Let's not give these people a pass just because we also have a D or an R on our ballot.

Quite possibly. I think Apple and Cook likely care more about the environment that most large companies and CEOs, but there is clearly limited to what can and should be done. I think they've done a gret job with reducing packaging, using more recyclable materials, and energy reduction, but these all benefit their bottom line, too.

This bot has been removed from circulation due to a malfunctioning morality chip.

There's something about a solar panel array that's five times larger than the building it's serving that just feels wrong. However, it's projects like this that spurs innovation in photovoltaics to be more efficient so sometimes you just have to go through the growing pains.

A lot of solar power is needed to power something small. For example, if one wanted to power their entire home, they'd need more than a few 2'x4' panels. Even an entire roof of panels would only power the home for so many hours per day. The size of Apple's building (any building/business for that matter) requires more than one might think. I think it's great that Apple is going in the right direction. Hopefully more businesses will invest in solar power (and other types) to get mostly off the electrical grid, which uses coal-burning to power the electrical power plants.